The University of Alabama Capstone College of Nursing recently received a grant to address a shortage in the state’s nursing education workforce.
The U.S. Department of Labor awarded the grant of more than $3.5 million to help grow and diversify Alabama’s nursing profession, the university said in a news release.
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing reports that only 17.3% of full-time nurse educators in the U.S. are from minority backgrounds. Additionally, one-third of the current nurse educator workforce is projected to retire by 2025.
Dr. Susan Welch, associate professor with the Capstone College of Nursing, secured the funding from the department’s Employment and Training Administration’s Nursing Expansion Grant Program.
The program supports innovative partnerships and strategies that expand and diversify America’s pipeline of qualified nursing professionals. Specifically, the grants will increase the number of nursing instructors and educators.
“The National Academies of Medicine’s ‘Future of Nursing’ calls on nursing schools to address the nurse educator shortage from diverse populations to advance health equity,” said Welch. “BAMA DIstance aims to prepare a diverse population of registered nurses to enter the nursing education workforce, both addressing the nurse educator shortage and transforming the landscape of health care in our state.”
To achieve the goals, BAMA DIstance will rely on partnerships among Capstone, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and academic institutions with nursing student populations from underrepresented groups.
The project will recruit Bachelor of Science in Nursing-prepared nurses in Alabama to earn a Master of Science in Nursing degree with a nursing education specialty. Throughout the course of their studies, the program will support participants’ transition from clinical experts to clinical nurse educators.
The U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration will award funding through the Nursing Expansion Grant Program to 25 public-private partnerships in 17 states.
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